This Sydney based label first came to my attention when scouring the Alice Euphemia website. The 'Modern Romance' collection is the 2010/2011 Resort collection and the debut for this fashion label. The future looks bright for the up-and-coming brand on the move with their strong emphasise on the structure of clothing as opposed to the colour or material. I do find the absence of colour and the minimalist approach as a young person to be a bit plaintive but it also allows the label to establish an identity within the fashion world through structure. The Eleventh Hour describes their own aesthetic as "architectural".
Their earlier pieces featured quite a few sheer panels which I find interesting and alluring but it does make the piece less accessible and easy to wear when in public unless of course there was something underneath like a leather bustier as well as leggings to save grace. It's a bold move construction wise, I'm just not too sure whether it would have payed off in terms of profits.
The Eleventh Hour was founded by Sydney based designer Anne Tu. Described as being a haven, catering "for those who appreciate quiet details, clean lines, luxurious fabrics and precise tailoring."
It certainly doesn't have any of the theatrics of Romance was Born but there is a mature look about it as well as versatility to wear the pieces at work functions with the drapery pants and jackets. The lacy dresses remind me a bit of Lover by Susien Chong in its early days of the Rose Army collection which I do love. The sweet lacy and black ruffled dress can easily have attitude added to it by wearing Doc Martens and silver skull jewellery.
I love the sweet sheer ruffles that mimic a cape structure with this black ruffled dress and pointed collar- it all seems so Edwardian to me. It's a dress like this that I adore for it's simple design but also the glamor about it as well as the luxurious material. For a singer or any other musician who wants to dress with style this dress is perfect, ticking the boxes for dressing in musicians black but the dress is also light weight and would let you move freely. Yesterday while awaiting for my shift to start I saw two gorgeous necklaces that would suit a dress of this style- one was a small cameo and marcasite piece and the other was a cow skull in sterling silver. You can chose your accessories to create and evoke a certain atmosphere. The skull would be more suited to using a Ouija board and burning candles while the cameo necklace would be suited for high tea with the queen. Pieces like this really rev my engine- versatility all in the same style of dress means you get twice the wear out of them. Despite all my dresses I don't have a nice plain, little black dress yet.
The cape which has a button through seam of a shirt is a bit more casual then the ruffled black dress, the styling of a hard wood floor with a white painted wall shows off the pieces in black really well but the white background doesn't do justice to the detail, stitching and structure of the white pieces in the collection. I'm commentating and favouring the black pieces a lot more as well due to my own personal taste- if I can get it in black then I usually buy it in black. The sheer nature of the dress means you'd do better to wear a tight-fitting body dress underneath to save grace. I myself own a Stolen Girlfriends Dress which serves that very purpose which had a large red, tartan bow on the back. I use it for sheer things instead though and for layering and extra warmth. This dress would probably be more suited for wearing in Summer/ Spring due to the sleeves of the cap making layering just that little more difficult.
Designer of The Eleventh Hour Anne Tu studied at the esteemed St George College of Fashion and Technology, before spending three years at Kirrily Johnston as head design assistant, and cutting her teeth with UK based minimalist experts, Preen.Anne personally oversees the the production of her pieces within Australia, ensuring that the details on the pieces are kept flawless, that the edges are smoothly bound and the french seams are carefully and expertly crafted to ensure the pieces are beautiful on the inside as well as the out.
“The Eleventh Hour aesthetic can be described as architectural. Intricate shoulder pleats look as never ending as the Scalinata stairs of Rome, translucent panels as irregular as the windows of a Frank Lloyd Wright home and elongated collars as sharp as the Empire State Building.”
Making appearances in fashion magazines such as Oyster, Russh, Fresh It as well as Russh online, I expect bigger and better things from Anne Tu and the creative dream team at The Eleventh Hour in the seasons to come. Maybe even their own show at RAFW with more pieces dabbling in colour as well as keeping up with their strong emphasise on architectural structure and french seams. If you're interested in seeing some of the pieces in store, head on down to Alice Euphemia or Fame Agenda in Melbourne or Fallow or Bessie Head if you find yourself in Queensland. Expect to see a post on their most recent collection 'Melt' appearing shortly.
